General uninstallation troubleshooting | CS5, CS5.5 products

Learn how to fix issues that occur when you uninstall an Adobe Creative Suite 5 or CS5.5 product.

Different factors can cause system errors, including conflicts among device drivers, software, and hardware, and corrupt elements in files. Although a system error occurs only when you work with Adobe Creative Suite 5 or CS5.5, Adobe Creative Suite isn't necessarily the cause. It's possible that it's the only application that uses enough memory or processor cycles to expose the problem.

Before you start

Read Troubleshoot uninstallation issues | Adobe Creative Suite 5 and CS5.5 products before you attempt the solutions in this document. Then, perform the tasks in order. Record the tasks you perform and the results of each, including errors or problematic behavior. Adobe Technical Support can use this information to assist you if you call.

Important: Back up all personal files before performing any of these tasks. Always restart the computer after a system error occurs to refresh its memory. Continuing to work without restarting the computer can compound the problem.

1. Make sure that you have administrator privileges. 

Adobe Creative Suite 5 requires administrative privileges to uninstall. Look in Accounts Preferences (macOS) or the User Accounts Control Panel (Windows) to see which accounts on your computer have administrative privileges. Make sure that you are logged in as a user who has administrative privileges. If you don’t have administrative privileges or don't know how to check, contact your system administrator.

2. Check the knowledgebase for uninstall error documentation.

If you encounter an error message during the uninstall process, search this knowledgebase for specific troubleshooting articles.

3. Run the Adobe Creative Suite 5 product uninstaller while no other applications are running.

Some applications or services can cause system errors or freezes when running concurrently with the Adobe Creative Suite 5 product uninstaller. Before starting the Adobe Creative Suite 5 product uninstaller, disable other applications, including startup items and services (items that start automatically on Windows).

  • macOS: If applications don’t quit as expected, choose Force Quit from the Apple menu.
    On macOS, you can also use the Activity Monitor to identify and quit processes that use large amounts of system resources. Go to the Apple support website for assistance with Activity Monitor
  • Windows: Right-click applications in the taskbar and choose Close. If applications don't quit as expected, press Ctrl+Alt+Delete to open the Task Manager. Select the non-responsive application, and choose End Task. You can also close unessential processes in the Processes tab of the Task Manager.

4. Perform a safe boot (macOS) or a clean boot (Windows).

To eliminate potential conflicts on the startup volume, perform a safe boot (macOS) or clean boot (Windows). Then try to uninstall your Adobe Creative Suite 5 or CS5.5 product again.

5. Uninstall Adobe Creative Suite 5 from a new user account.

Occasionally, a user account can become corrupted and prevent the uninstaller from accessing or deleting the necessary files and folders. Create an account with administrative permissions, log in to it, and then rerun the uninstaller.

For help creating a user account, see Create a user account in Windows on the Microsoft support website. Or, see Set up users, guests, and groups on Mac on the Apple support website. If you need additional assistance, contact your system administrator.

6. Scan the system for viruses (Windows).

Use current anti-virus software to check your system for viruses, which can damage software and cause system errors.

7. Get rid of potentially problematic files.

Delete the following types of files and then try to uninstall the Adobe Creative Suite 5 product again.

8. Identify the file that causes the problem.

The Adobe Creative Suite 5 product installation log can indicate an additional problem that is the source of the failure. To review the log files manually, see Troubleshoot CS5 and CS5.5 installation with install logs. Or, use the Adobe Support Advisor to analyze the files and point you to documentation for known errors.

9. Run the Adobe CS5 Cleaner Tool.

10. Visit the Adobe user forums.

You can see if other Adobe customers have a similar problem by visiting the Community. If you confirm that other users have experienced the same problem, then Adobe Support can sometimes duplicate and research the problem.

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